Wicked Justice
by Mana the Cat Magician
Summary: When the twins are harmed, the Black Rose Witch makes her reappearance; however, her her rage is rage no longer focused on hurt and rejection. Now, it's love and fear. Perhaps that's why Yusei's so forgiving to the fact that she almost hurt him too.


**Warnings**: Violence, blood, and language

Pairings: Light Faitshipping (YuseixAki), Rua x Aki x Ruka sibling love

Notes: Brace yourself. This one's rather long. If you feel like it, feel free to take a break from reading it. Otherwise, sit back and enjoy~! =D

Summary: When the twins are hurt, the Black Rose Witch makes her reappearance; however, her reasoning for her rage are no longer "hurt and rejection". Instead, it's now, "love and fear". Perhaps that's why Yusei's so forgiving with the fact that Aki almost hurt him too.

* * *

><p><strong>~Wicked Justice~<strong>

_Tick, tock… Tick, tock…_

Despite the clock's constant ticking, Aki felt as if the silence within the room was slowly suffocating her with its mighty pressure. She kept the lights dim from fear that any more interference with her senses would drive her insane. In the table in front of her, a lone glass of water sat indifferently to its surroundings, unlike the claw Signer opposite of it. The girl sat on the couch, fidgeting every few moment in response to another runaway thought. An icy sensation within her body was the only thing keeping her from pacing around the room and instead froze her to the couch. She instead vented her jitters by tapping her fingers on her lap.

'_They're perfectly fine, Izayoi,'_ she thought to herself, trying to calm herself. _'They said it themselves; they've done this a million times, Neo Domino Police are always out and about, and it isn't that late.' _Her hands untangled themselves and clutched the fabric of the couch tightly in an attempt to restrain their owner from catapulting herself off the furniture, out the door, and into the dark night. _'But, should they really be taking this long…?'_

Her gaze began to gravitate to clock when she stopped herself. That would be the fourth time she had checked in the last ten minutes. She was overreacting. Instead, Aki turned her gaze towards the window, and was greeted by the bright lights and stunning view of Neo Domino City. The Tops always had a stunning view, and with Rua and Ruka's penthouse being the highest in the apartments, she assumed this was the best view of all. The lights soothed her nerves. Surely Rua and Ruka would be fine in a city this bright, wouldn't they?

_Tick, tock... Tick, tock…_

At the moment, she was anxiously awaiting the twins return from what was supposed to be a quick trip to a convenience store. It wasn't that she was uncomfortable with being alone in their apartments. Sadly, Aki was very accustomed to loneliness. Her father was a busy senator, she had spent a few years on her own on the streets, and while she lived in the Arcadia Movement, she had purposefully distanced herself from other psychics other than Divine, so being the only person within a room was nothing new.

The _real_ reason to _why_ she was so agitated was the twins.

She cared about the twins deeply, a result of always seeing each other at Duel Academy, whether during the lunch break period or before or after school, so it was natural that they had seen her dramatic decrease in cheerfulness. The WRGP was rapidly approaching, and therefore, the men of the team, Bruno, Yusei, Crow, and even Jack, were constantly busy to prepare themselves for the event, leaving little time, or rather, attention, for Aki or the twins. The only way to pry them away from their work was either mentioning the words "D-wheel" or some variation of "duel", and, unless it was related to helping the team prepare for the upcoming tournament, they would return to their work without taking heed of any of the twins' complaints or Aki's disappointed expressions. It wasn't that Aki didn't understand that they were busy, but the fact that Yusei was never available for assistance with her physics homework or _any_ kind of activity that _didn't_ involve a D-wheel depressed her, and the twins had taken notice. Therefore, they had offered her to spend the night at their apartment in hopes of bringing back Aki's lively personality.

Aki had arrived around eight, and so far, the twins had made her night a very enjoyable one indeed. The trio had taken turns in what activities they did, so the night had been spent playing all sorts of games, from variations of dueling to things like truth-or-dare. The latter game had been spent on trying to get Aki to admit something embarrassing (ex: her feelings for a certain Signer), and therefore lead her to choosing dare and only dare, which had later backfired when Rua dared her to take a late-night swim in the chilly night. Once Aki had dried off, everyone had settled to agree on watching a movie. However, to Rua's absolute horror, there was no popcorn.

What would a movie night be without popcorn?

A crappy one, he had decided, which lead to him dragging his twin sister off to the convenience store at ten at night. At first, Aki was absolutely dead set on the idea of accompanying the two this late at night. The idea of two, small twelve-year-olds wandering around the dark was enough to send Aki into overprotective big sister mode, but, surprisingly enough, they had convinced her to let them go alone. She never would've let them go if it weren't for the twins cleverly double-teaming her.

"You don't think I can protect Ruka, do you, Aki-neechan?" he had challenged, his amber eyes filled with passion and a hint of mischievousness that the older Signer couldn't see.

"What?" she replied, her thought process thrown completely off-track at the young boy's claim. Rua's sudden accusation of Aki doubting his ability to protect his younger sister had come out of the left field, leaving her stunned, giving Rua a chance to persuade her.

Not hesitating at the opening of Aki's argument, he continued, "Ruka and I have been doing this all the time, Aki-san, and not once have I allowed her to get hurt!" He held up a finger for emphasis, hoping that he was convincing the teen to let them go alone. "But now you're saying that you don't think we can handle ourselves."

She shook her head and crossed her arms to Rua's statement. With a hint of disbelief Aki said, "That's not what I said."

"But you're implying it!" Rua argued, point a finger at her in objection.

Before Aki could say anything else, Ruka quickly stepped in to help her brother. "Aki-san, we'll be fine." She saw Aki's expression morph into a skeptical expression, and with the most soothing and persuading voice she could manage, she responded, "It's just as Rua said. We've done this many times before, and not once have we been hurt. Neo Domino City has a lot of officers patrolling the area." She smiled as Aki unfolded her arms, her defensive posture fading and skeptical expression changed into a considerate one. Being the mature twin, Ruka was often the voice of reason, and it seems that she was able to get through to their older sister figure. "We'll be fine, Aki-san," Ruka concluded, and with that, a defeated sigh floated from Aki's lips and into the air, and she allowed the twins to go freely by themselves.

_Tick… tock. Tick… tock._

But now that Aki had been left to her own devices, her imagination had been running wild without anything to distract her. Succumbing to her urge to look at the clock again, she glanced up, and with a great breath of relief, she saw the old-fashioned analogue clock only read thirty-five minutes after ten. She was overreacting. They had only been gone for about half an hour, and with all the variables that could interfere with their trip, it was perfectly understandable that they could take a while. In fact, they could be in the elevator right now.

She reached over to the table to pick up her glass of water, but apparently, she wasn't as calm as she made herself out to be, as her hands were shaking with apprehension and she knocked over the glass of water, effectively spilling its contents over the tabletop.

Cursing quietly to herself, she stood up and walked over to the kitchen to find something to clean up her spill. Glancing around the kitchen, she found a roll of paper towels near the microwave. Her accident with her glass of water was effectively distracting her from the situation at hand, as she wondered vaguely if it were the twins who restocked themselves on household supplies, or if their always absent parents had assigned maids or caretakers to check in on them from time to time. Aki tore off a few sheets and began walking back to the living room before she realized something that made her breath to get caught in her throat. Whipping around back to the microwave timer, her chocolate eyes widened in realization to the time the clock read.

11:04 PM.

'_Impossible!'_ she cried out in her mind as she tore back to the living room, the spill forgotten, and ripped through the contents of her duffel bag before pulling out a coral and ivory cell phone that had a small charm of a rose attached to it. Pressing a button on the phone, the screen lit up, and Aki let out a strangled gasp as the time on her cell phone reflected the one on the microwave.

That was two digital clocks against one old-fashioned clock for the actual time of the night, but she would rather believe that the twins were only taking thirty minutes to retrieve a bag of _popcorn_ than the idea that she had been waiting a whole hour for them and they _still_ weren't back yet. She looked back to the analogue clock in hopes that it was the one that was telling the truth, but to her absolute horror, the seconds hand had stopped moving.

That did it. Disregarding the fact that she was currently in a night gown and in house slippers, she grabbed her D-Wheel and bolted towards the maddeningly slow elevator, deciding it would be faster than attempting to ride recklessly down the massive staircase, not to mention safer. She bit her lip and paced inside the elevator in attempt to vent out her anxiousness.

How had she missed the fact that a whole _hour _had passed? How could she have been so stupid? She, of all people, should have known that Neo Domino wasn't the safest city in the world. Crime lurked ominously about the streets nightly, and Aki herself had involved herself with the dark side of Neo Domino, terrorizing the Daimon Area during her days as the Black Rose Witch. The Public Security Bureau couldn't protect everyone, despite their valiant attempts.

Noticing that she was almost to the first floor, Aki instinctively reached for her helmet, but realized that she had left it on the table countertop in her haste. An exasperated sigh escaped her lips at her stupidity, but she deemed it as a lost cause. Screw her safety. She'd be _damned _if she went back up 50 floors to pick up something like a _helmet_ when she should be searching for two innocent children she had let run off at this time of night.

She started the engine and it gave a loud roar in response to its activation. She placed herself on top of the Bloody Kiss, and the moment the elevator doors opened, Aki twisted on the acceleration and revved the engine to its fullest potential. Soon enough, she was outside with the bitter cold wind rushing through her clothes and piercing her skin. However, her adrenaline was already pumping through her system, making her numb to the cold. Against many of her instincts, she was riding her D-wheel over the speed limit without the proper gear to protect her at night. But Aki was apathetic to these details. The twins were the only thing she could think of at the moment, as well as the idea that if anything had happened to them, or more specifically, if anyone had hurt the two, there would be _hell_ to pay.

* * *

><p>It had only been about ten minutes since Aki left the Tops, but her frustration and worry was at an all-time high due to the fact that her search had been fruitless. She had yet to find a pair of mint-colored heads anywhere in the distance she had covered. Gritting her teeth in frustration, Aki forced her D-wheel into a harsh stop near a convenience store, bracing herself against the momentum of the stop as the brakes screeching in protest at the sudden command to go from one-hundred sixty to zero kilometers per hour in an instant. It was probably best that she asked the employees in the nearby shops about Rua and Ruka instead of just driving like a maniac through the city. But before she could even get off her D-wheel, she heard her name being called out by an unfamiliar voice.<p>

"_Izayoi… Aki?"_

Pausing at the call, Aki looked around her trying to locate the person who called for her. The voice sounded deep and masculine, but underneath, it was layered with wisdom, giving it an ancient quality. She never knew anyone with a voice like that. But looking around, she didn't even see anyone around her. Was she hearing things?

And then she saw it.

On one hand, it was understandable for Aki to have missed it. But then there was the other hand which deemed the psychic being absolutely _insane_ and not to mention blind for not seeing it the first time. In front of her was an intimidating and huge white lion with a golden mane and a horn upon its head, similar to a unicorn. It was covered in protective armor and staring at her with its amber colored eyes, a critical expression upon its face. Yet, the oddest thing about it was its… indistinct quality, so to speak. It was as if the monster was a hologram that could be conjured up, not from Solid Vision, but, say, a video phone.

"_Girl," _the ivory lion spoke again, and Aki flinched from the gruffness of the animal's voice. _"Are you or are you not Izayoi Aki?"_

"I… I am," she finally managed. "What are you…?"

But before she could finish her sentence, the lion suddenly took a few steps closer towards Aki, causing her to back up as a reflex. The lion begun to growl, and the hairs on the back of Aki's neck rose out of fear, triggering her fight-or-flight reflex, screaming at her to flee. But before Aki could decide to flee, the lion spoke again. _"I am Regulus the White Lion. It is rare to find one who can see Duel Spirits, but now is not the time to stand around in awe. Ruka and her brother are in danger."_

Suddenly Aki wasn't worried about her safety anymore, and her original fear for the twins returned. "What happened to them? Do you know where they are?" she cried out.

The humongous lion nodded, its critical expression morphing into one of great anger and anxiousness. _"They're in danger of being harmed by two greedy villains. I would interfere if I could, but, alas, I am not allowed to intervene this time. Only when faced with a danger that is atypical to this world can we, the monsters of Ruka's deck, take a physical form that would aid her, such as when that horrible villain of Yliaster challenged Ruka-chan." _Shaking its head, it continued to stare at Aki with its piercing gaze as she started up the engine of her D-Wheel once again.

"Regulas-san," Aki stated seriously, her chocolate eyes dark with anger and fear. A tense moment of silence reigned for a few seconds, as Aki mentally prepared herself. "Please show me the way."

The duel spirit seemed to assess her for a moment, judging her seriousness. But from the ferocity in Aki's eyes, it seemed to make its decision to trust her. _"You care about Ruka and her brother. Not only as a fellow Signer, but as a human being." _He paused, as if searching for the correct term to apply to the relationship between the younglings. After a brief moment, he finished his thought. _"A friend."_

The claw Signer nodded sincerely, clutching her birthmark as a faint throbbing began to emit from it. It wasn't lighting up yet, but nonetheless. Ruka was in danger, and if she were in danger, then Rua was in danger as well.

"_Then follow me. And quickly!"_

It only took a few moments for Regulus to lead her to the children that Aki was so worried for. The duel spirit could sprint fast, and Aki had no qualms with breaking the speed limit once again. The intense adrenaline that was pumping through her veins had no effect on the painful knot of worry within her stomach. She had let the twins roam freely in the late night, and now they were in danger. Whatever harm that befell them was entirely her fault.

"_Izayoi!" _the White Lion called out, snapping Aki out of her pity fest and into alertness._ "They're in that alley, up ahead!" _The duel spirit began to fade out, becoming a blur of ivory and gold in the claw Signer's vision. _"This is all I can do. Please help them!"_

"I will! Thank you Regulus-san!" she called out to the duel spirit as she continued driving directly towards the alley. Suddenly, the headlights of her D-Wheel lit up two startled and unfamiliar faces that began running to the sides of the alley to avoid being hit. Aki's eyes narrowed in concentration, and she turned the D-Wheel sideways to stop, sending mini sparks flying from the ground. She kicked up the stand of her D-Wheel, and retrieved her duel disk out of habit. She whipped around to send a deadly glare at the men as she snapped on her duel disk.

"Aki-san…" whimpered a familiar, soft voice. Aki's gaze led her to the source of the voice, and her breath painfully caught in her throat.

Ruka, padded in protection gear, was hovering weakly over her brother's unconscious form, both their duel boards and helmets thrown ways away from the young girl. Crystal tears that threatened to overflow were in the corners of her terrified amber eyes. Her small frame was trembling slightly, and her expression was screaming for help, not only for her, but for her guardian.

Rua had sworn he'd protect his sister. And he did. Whatever the price was.

The older of the two siblings lay unconscious on the ground, but despite his calm and peaceful expression, he looked horrible. Aki had seen many damaged bodies in her life; battered, bruised, or bleeding. She had caused many injuries in her time as the Black Rose Witch (both intentional and unintentional), but never in her life had she felt such immense guilt and pain from seeing the little boy she was so close to on the ground. His face was swelling, as if someone had connected a harsh punch to his right cheek, with a black eye sure to form. A light trail of dried blood had streamed down the left side of his head while cuts and scrapes decorated his body. An icy feeling within Aki raised goosebumps on her arms. Her eyes felt wet, and she rapidly blinked her eyes to hold the tears back.

"Ruka… Rua…!" Aki cried, taking an automatic step towards them, when suddenly the two large men she had forgotten about suddenly blocked her pathway to the twins. She halted in her advanced, and suddenly all her fear and sadness morphed into a blinding rage at the men who committed such horrors to innocent children. Aki clenched her teeth and balled her fists, giving the two criminals a death glare that would have had them slowly burning in a hellish fire before turning into nothing but ashes, yet they were unaffected and only saw her as some kind of prize that had been hand-wrapped and sent to them.

"Heh heh heh," the brunette man laughed maliciously. His marker above his eye made him idiotic as his eyebrows furrowed, but his grin made him look completely brainless. "Well, well, well! Look what we have here, Ryota. It seems that this little lady decided to drop us a visit."

Ryota, the taller, brawnier, and red-head of the two mimicked the other man's grating laugh and leered in a way that made Aki's blood boil. She was positively simmering now, and it wasn't long until she blew. "What do ya think you're doin' here, miss? Came here to give Izinagi and me a good time?" He took a step forward towards her, but Aki stood her ground.

"Get. Out. Of. My. _Way,_" the burgundy haired woman commanded, her voice wickedly dangerous and cold. The two men's expressions morphed into identical expressions of confusion for a split second before they both began howling in laughter, apparently thinking the psychic was a comedian. Aki, however, was not amused at _all_, and she took another step towards them, growling at them in warning. The men took one look, and began laughing even louder, straining Aki's verylast thread of patience.

"Can you believe her, Izinagi?" the red-head choked out between laughs. "S-She thinks… That…" His sentence was soon swallowed by his chortles, but his partner seemed to understand what he was saying. Aki's vision was beginning to turn red, and although she couldn't tell, her breaths were becoming heavy as well.

"I know!" Wheezing, he was able to look at Aki one more time before laughing again. Her knuckles began to whiten from the stress she was forcing upon them. Would they just _shut up_? The brunet swallowed his laughter for a moment, although the amusement was still there, and allowed his lustful eyes to travel on Aki's body. "God! Ryota and I are going to have _so _much fun with you!"

That was the last straw. All control Aki had on her rage snapped, and any restraint or patience from the girl was a thing of a past.

"**I SAID **_**MOVE!**_" Aki screamed, and suddenly the men were blasted with a strong gust of wind, sending them flying into the street, their laughter turning into startled yells. A faint _clink _noise escaped Aki's senses, as she was too satisfied with the fact that she could now see the two twins. She quickly ran up to them, and kneeled before Ruka. "Ruka… What happened?"

"Aki-san…!" The youngest Signer wrapped her small, shaking frame against Aki's, and the older girl returned the embrace. "We… We were going home… On our duel boards…" The younger girl closed her eyes, trying to find peace in Aki's presence. "And suddenly, one of those men grabbed me from my duel board and dragged me into the alley. Rua came in after me… And they wanted our duel boards. They wouldn't let us go, so we offered a duel… We won, but…" Tears began to stream from Ruka's eyes, and her voice began to grow weaker and softer. "They… wouldn't… let us go… And Rua… Rua…"

Ruka's voice trailed off, and Aki's eyebrows furrowed. "Ruka?" she asked, slightly alarmed, and began shaking the girl. The teal haired girl didn't respond, and Aki removed her from her body and lifted her up, surprised to see her eyes closed.

But what surprised her more were the dark marks around her neck.

All of her rage from before rushed back into her like a tsunami, stronger than before and this time all consuming. Aki only had enough reason left within her to move the twins out of the way before she lost all control. Her entire body was shaking, and wisps of her burgundy hair were beginning to float in the air in harmony to the raging flames of anger within her.

Those bastards. _Those __**bastards.**_

"I summon the Black Rose Dragon!" Aki's voice, dark with rage and contempt, commanded, and the disoriented men farther up the alley suddenly found vines wrapping around their chests and dragging them back into the alley. Aki could barely hear their stunned cries or feel the faint burning in her arm.

They found themselves suspended in the air, facing a dragon with fearsome yellow eyes with a witch commanding it. The men began squirming when they felt the vines of the Black Rose Dragon tighten. Those _**bastards**_. They choked Ruka, a tiny and frail little twelve year old girl, and had felt absolutely no remorse _at all_. They gave young Rua a black eye, and probably threw him into the wall as well, and yet, they had the nerve to _laugh. _Her malicious thoughts were in sync of the rose dragon's actions, as the two men began screaming in pain as thorns erupted from the vines, slicing at their skin and drawing the crimson liquid that kept them alive. She couldn't even notice the malicious smile that began forming on her face, trapped in her dark world of hatred.

Izinagi and Ryota had unluckily been dealt with a terrible fortune when they chose to try and harm two innocent children. They had unleashed something akin to the Black Rose Witch, and their deaths were almost guaranteed. The claws of Death were closing around them with the maiden below as its medium, and there was nothing they could do. They were powerless in Aki's grip. To them, the monster laughed in pure pleasure as they screamed in agony.

_And yet, she couldn't even hear the vicious laughter escaping her mouth._

* * *

><p>Heartbreaking pain and sadness. All consuming rage and hatred. A lust for revenge. Chilling fear for her loved ones.<p>

These were the feelings that corrupted Yusei Fudo's dreams and forced him to awake from his sleep with a gasp filled with fear and surprise, feeling as if he had just broken the surface of the ocean after drowning. Wide, cobalt eyes scanned its surroundings, and found a faint maroon light lit up the couch and the blanket near its owner. Yusei blinked in faint confusion and rubbed his eyes, thinking he was imagining things, but opening his eyes again, he realized the light was still there and realized where the illumination was coming from. Yusei looked at his arm and found the dragon mark glowing a bright red, burning and festering on his arm.

Immediately, he knew something was wrong, and that knowledge wiped any grogginess from being awoken so suddenly. Closing his eyes, he placed his hand on the dragon mark in an attempt to both soothe the pain and figure out who was in troubles. Suddenly, all the negative feelings that forced him to awaken came rushing back in a powerful wave, and his eyes snapped back open again.

_Aki!_

He threw off the blanket in a rush of panic and alertness. She was being consumed by such dark and negative feelings, and yet, he couldn't help wonder why was she so angry. It had been so long since he saw Aki in a rage, but never before had he seen her to be in such a blinding fury. Pulling on his classic navy jacket, he vaguely heard rustling from upstairs, meaning Jack and Crow had been also been roused awake by their marks. He didn't have time to wait for them, however, especially when he considered how long it could take to get Crow into full alertness. He was positive that they would catch up with him sooner or later. Aki was _beyond_ upset, and he knew first-hand the violence his friend could cause when in a rage. She was reckless when her emotions got the best of her, and he didn't want her to do anything she might regret. Ignoring the questions of the disoriented blue-haired mechanic as he passed him, Yusei grabbed his helmet and immediately started the engine of his D-Wheel. As soon as the garage was large enough to let the duelist out, he revved the engine and flew out of the apartment just as Crow and Jack began descending the stairs.

Crow rubbed his eyes, trying vainly to get the sleep out of them. He stared at the open garage with an expression of disbelief, although it was mostly marred by fatigue. "…Yusei just flew out of here like a bat out of Hell, didn't he Bruno." It wasn't even a question. Crow already knew the answer, but nonetheless, Bruno nodded.

"He didn't even tell me where he was going. In fact, I'm honestly not sure he was even aware of the fact I was even here," the blunet explained. He watched as Crow collapsed rather humorously onto the couch Yusei was previously on. The all-nighters the four boys had been pulling recently had finally caught up to them, and they had previously planned on crashing early tonight. That was the plan until birthmarks started lighting up and burning their arms. So much for that plan.

Still, Crow pulled the covers over his head, obviously exhausted and wanting to revert to their previous actions: sleeping. "Whatever," Crow mumbled into the couch, already making his return to the world of Dreamland. "It's Aki. Yusei's got this." A loud yawn was heard from the duelist within the blanket. "Now if only I could shut off this nightlight…"

The former king's face quickly met his palm. As much as he'd love to leave this to Yusei (as Crow mentioned, anything concerning the psychic was clearly _his_ field of expertise, despite how oblivious their friend could be to the girl's feelings), there was something wrong with this situation. He had been present at the Fortune Cup and in the hospital: two areas where the claw Signer's psychic abilities had been unleashed when she was filled with intense anger. If the Crimson Dragon was just showing even a _hint_ of how Aki was feeling, then there was something definitely wrong. There was also the fact that underneath all the anger was a silent pain emitting from the youngest Signer of the group, and if _she _was hurt, then there was no doubt her brother was suffering in pain as well.

The blond walked up to Crow, and dragged his nearly unconscious form out from under the comfortable warm blankets onto the cold, harsh ground. Jack always preferred Crow when he was half-dead from sleep. Normally, the Blackbird duelist would throw a hissy fit if Jack tried this when he was awake; however, when he was tired, like in this very moment, he simply groaned and would attempt to drag himself to the nearest bed, or just stay quiet on the floor, complying with whatever Jack told him to do if it were within reason.

"Get up Crow," the ruler of Red Demons Dragon commanded. "Izayoi is not the only one who's in trouble. Ruka and Rua are most likely the cause of her anger."

The red head lazily lifted his head from the ground. "So the twins made some touchy comment about her relationship about Yusei-" His sentence was cut off by a cry of pain when the taller man kicked him in the gut.

"Wake _up_, Crow!" he growled. "Our marks wouldn't light up if it were that petty! The twins might be hurt." To this, gray eyes snapped wide open, and the owner immediately jumped to his feet, wide awake with alertness with the idea that the youngest members of the group could be harmed. Jack could see his long-time friend connecting the dots in this dire situation.

"That's the only reason why Aki would get so angry…" Crow stated.

"Exactly," Jack said seriously. He stared intensely at the two men in the room, realizing that they could see where this was all going. Although they had never seen Aki when her powers were still out of control, they had heard stories from the girl herself. "Whenever that woman is upset, duel monsters start to become real."

The three remaining men in Poppo Time exchanged worried looks, and immediately went into action.

* * *

><p>Yusei wasn't exactly sure how he knew where Aki was, but if he had to place a bet, he would put his money on the birthmark. It connected all of them, and with every turn he took, he vaguely noticed that the mark with glow even brighter and stronger. It wasn't long until he found the female duelist. Unfortunately, it wasn't something he wanted to see. The ace monster of Aki's deck, Black Rose Dragon, was summoned and materialized, and the monster itself looked positively demonic. It had two screaming men within its grip, and the vines seemed to be slowly tightening. Yet, while the monster looked unquestionably menacing, its master looked absolutely murderous. The power inhibitor Aki normally wore in her hair was missing, a sure sign that she had already lost control. Her body was still shaking in rage, but what <em>actually<em> frightened Yusei was the fact that she was _smiling. _It was the same cruel and sadistic grin she wore during their battles, back when she enjoyed making others suffer in retaliation when they had hurt her emotionally.

He had to stop her immediately. The men in her grip looked almost critically wounded, and it wouldn't be long until she might actually kill them. What he didn't understand was _why_ she would be out of her home at midnight or so upset, but that wasn't really important right now. He needed to stop her, _before _she did something she regretted. Killing the engine of his D-Wheel, Yusei jumped off and started running towards the enraged girl. "Aki! Stop!"

Burning chocolate eyes whipped toward his running form, and just for a short moment, it seemed as Aki's rationality returned as she recognized the boy. "Yusei…?" she asked, confused by his sudden presence. Black Rose Dragon turned to look down on the marked man, mirroring its master's surprise.

Yusei stopped in between Aki and the dragon, stretching his arms outward, almost protectively. "That's enough Aki! Don't do this!"

The confused look upon Aki's face remained a few moments, as if trying to figure out what Yusei was talking about, but it quickly turned merciless and hating at his request. "No…" she rebelled quietly, before yelling again. "No…! They hurt them! They hurt Ruka and Rua!" She pointed furiously at the unconscious twins behind her, and Yusei was shocked by their battered forms. His mind quickly deduced the reason for her anger, and for a brief moment, he felt animosity towards Aki's prisoners, understanding Aki's reasoning for her actions. "They hurt two innocent little children! They deserve this!" she screamed, and suddenly, the two men with thrown into the wall by her dragon.

Cobalt eyes widened, and Yusei realized that, as horrible as the two men were, Aki would never be the same again if she woke up from her rage, only to find that she had blood on her hands. "No, Aki!" He grabbed her by the shoulder and tried to turn her away from the violence she was creating, but she refused to turn around to look at him. "Don't do this!" he cried out desperately.

Suddenly, Aki whipped around, glaring ferociously at him with wild eyes. Yusei felt a strong gust of wind fly at him, no doubt a product of his friend's psychic abilities and anger, and he braced himself against it. "Don't get in my way!" Shocked, his eyes widened at the statement, knowing when and where he had heard this before, and the fact she was saying it was definitely not a good sign. "If you try to stop me Yusei… I won't…" Aki shook her head, tendrils of her magenta-colored hair flying crazily around her. "I won't hesitate to…! No one will get in my way! Not even you!"

Yusei stood there, completely astonished. Aki, his friend for almost a year, was _threatening_ him, and she was completely serious about it. "Aki…" he breathed.

The angered teen turned her back on Yusei, and saw that her targets were trying to crawl away. Fueled by her animosity towards them, Black Rose Dragon's vines found their waists once again, and dragged them back towards her. Both of them screamed in absolute terror at the idea that they were still going to be tortured. "Please…!" Ryota begged. Tears began to stream from his eyes at the pain and fear he was experiencing. "Stop!"

The criminal's whimpers did nothing to quell her anger. In fact, it instead fanned the flames of her fury. He had the _audacity_ to beg for mercy after all he had done? He alone yelled this time as she slammed him into the cement ground. "Did you stop when you lost your duel to Rua and Ruka?" Ryota was lifted again and thrown into the wall this time. He no longer found the ability to scream as the dark violet vines twisted around his form tighter. "Did you pause in _any _hesitation when you harmed those _children!_"

"I'm sorry…" he whispered in a rasped voice. "I'm sorry…!"

Yusei watched in horror as the girl commanded the dragon to throw him into the wall once more. She was absolutely lost in the hideous anger and pain she felt. Anger because they harmed someone else. Pain because they hurt someone they loved. His eyes became impossibly wide, realizing that this was why she was much more vicious than he had ever seen her. Because they hurt people she cared about "Aki…!" he cried out again in an attempt to stop her, but now his voice couldn't even reach her.

"If you're so sorry, you'll enjoy this!" she spat out. "_THIS_ is your atonement!" She slammed both of them against the wall once more. "_THIS_ is your way of apologizing!" Aki mentally commanded her dragon to lift the bodies from the ground, and felt somewhat surprised underneath all her rage that both men were still conscious.

Izinagi spat out blood from his mouth, as he glared at her. "You… You monster…"

Both Signer's eyes widened at the title the man gave her, but only Aki truly felt the immeasurable rage. The grip of her dragon tightened, and Yusei let out a grunt of discomfort as their marks grew brighter and hotter in recognition to claw Signer's violence. "_I'm _a monster? _**I**__ AM?" _

Ignoring his discomfort, Yusei wrapped his arms around her waist, in both an attempt to restrain her and to soothe her. She fought against his grip fiercely, but he held fast onto her, just as Aki's monster held fast to her victims. "Aki…!" he begged, desperate to make her stop her assault on the men. The Aki he knew wouldn't want to kill them, but she was so lost in her rage that any rational thoughts were long gone. And within the chaos of it, she still had that twisted smile painted on her face as she watched her victims squeal. He hated the fact that, at the moment, she was enjoying this, because he knew that when she woke up from this chaos, she would realize what she had nearly done, and he would have to stand the fact that there was _nothing_ he could do to stop her. He knew he couldn't do anything to help her, and he _hated_ the realization, but he _had_ to try, had to do something! "Stop…!" he tried again.

Ryota seemed to agree with Yusei's sentiments. Tears and blood were becoming mixed on his face by this point. "Stop… please…" Aki didn't seem to like his begging, and her rose dragon's grasp increased impossibly more, causing the two men to whimper from the lack of air. "St…" The owner of the materialized dragon had just about enough with his begging, and was about ready to silence his pleas, once and for all, until he choked out the rest of his sentence. "Stop smiling… at our… pain…"

_Smiling?_

Aki's eyes widened in shock, and the red color that had painted her vision the entire time faded immediately and left her along with all of her black emotions, leaving her feeling drained with only a chilling feeling of horror left within her. The sudden lack of concentration and anger caused Black Rose Dragon to revert to a mere hologram, and the two bleeding and traumatized men dropped to the ground, coughing and gasping for breaths. Aki's eyes filled to the brim with tears as the horrible realization began cementing itself in her.

She had almost _killed_ someone. _And she was smiling while she did it._

Yusei could see that his dear friend had finally snapped out of her frenzy, but despite that, he refused to loosen his grip on her waist. In fact, it only tightened in his attempt to comfort her. He could see the horror and unbelievable pain in his dear friend's eyes, and it pained him as well to see her in such a state. But what could he do? What could he say? He had been unable to snap her out of it, and now she was going to suffer from his inability to help her. "Aki…" he whispered quietly, at a complete lost at what to do.

Yusei's defeated voice brought all her terrible actions to the front of her mind, and it broke her completely. She slumped to the ground so suddenly that it broke the head Signer's grip. On her knees, she gripped the tiny rocks that lay beneath her, tears now pouring from her eyes like a waterfall. She squinted through the watery veil within her eyes, staring in complete devastation at her terrible acts. Seeing the blood… the scratches… Aki couldn't take it anymore and shut her eyes tightly, whimpering in a broken voice. "What have I done?" She opened her eyes and found her terrified gaze on the ground, her tears succumbing to gravity's wrath and wetting the asphalt below her. "What have I _done…?"_

* * *

><p>It wasn't long until Crow, Jack, and Bruno arrived at the scene, but needless to say, they were shocked speechless by the scene. Two unfamiliar, damaged and bleeding men were lying unconscious on the ground while Yusei was trying in vain to calm down a sobbing and hysterical Aki with the twins also unconscious in the background, with Rua looking fairly beaten as well. When Yusei had finally noticed their presence, he asked them to call an ambulance for the twins and Security for the men. Once the call was put forward, Yusei explained the circumstances of the situation to them. When Crow had learned that the two men on the ground were the ones who roughed up Rua and Ruka, he suddenly had second thoughts about having mentioned to Ushio about getting them an ambulance. To his surprise, Yusei shook his head in disagreement.<p>

"They need medical attention," he stated in a tightly controlled voice, a sign that he was very upset as well, but was trying to keep his emotions in check for the situation. Crow might have argued further, but when Yusei gestured to the broken woman behind him, Yusei's intentions suddenly were crystal clear to him, and he nodded his head solemnly.

Eventually, Security and the ambulances arrived, and the two men were placed in one ambulance while Rua and Ruka were put into a different one. The ambulances sped off immediately in order to take care of the damaged, leaving the four men and Aki alone. Yusei suggested that Aki could ride with one of them to the hospital, but his suggestion was shot down almost immediately.

"No," she said, her voice rough. She looked dejectedly into Yusei's eyes for a brief moment, before turning her gaze downwards again. "I need to drive my D-Wheel there."

Concerned by her refusal and insistence to drive, he offered an alternative. "Bruno could take it for you," he said, not even asking the other mechanic's permission, figuring in this situation, he'd understand.

To his surprise, Aki waved off to the guys, telling them to go and that they would meet up with them at the hospital. The men had exchanged curious looks with each other, before taking off, leaving her with Yusei. She turned around and looking at him seriously with her puffy red eyes. "I'll be fine, Yusei. It's not like I'm going to try and do something stupid," she stated.

Yusei's eyes narrowed in response to her comment; he knew her well enough that he could see right through her. She was trying to mask her feelings and seem like she could keep it together, but he _knew_ she wasn't okay. Not after that. He couldn't just leave her behind with the knowledge that she was falling apart at the seams. "I'll follow behind you, then."

Aki stared at him tiredly, but nodded, returning to her D-Wheel. She quickly started the ignition, and Yusei raised an eyebrow at her gear, or, rather, lack of thereof. "Where's your helmet, Aki?"

The despondent girl seemed confused for a moment, before realizing what he was talking about. "Oh. I accidently left it back at the Tops." Yusei's silent, disapproving gaze, made her feel guilty, so she elaborated. "I was in a rush to find the twins. I… I let them wander around this late at night without thinking… and… now…" More liquid filled her eyelids at the heavy reminder of her mistake. Her body started quaking once again, and she shook her head in an attempt to stop the onslaught of tears that were coming. She felt the familiar salty water fall down her cheeks, and she took deep breaths to fight the urge to sob.

Meanwhile, the head Signer watched her, upset with himself. Dammit. Couldn't he say anything that _didn't_ make her cry? It pained him to see Aki cry, and being the reason for her tears was maddening. It filled him with such an insane desire to make the tears stop and instead make her laugh and smile, and he couldn't help but wonder vaguely why he felt this way only now. At the Fortune Cup, he had openly made her cry, and although he felt guilty, it had never escalated to this. Was it because she was such a good friend of his now? Or perhaps it was because he had watched her teeter on the decision of killing someone, and he had been unable to do anything. He didn't know, and he also decided it didn't matter. Right now, she needed comfort.

But she wasn't taking any at the moment.

Pulling herself together and swallowing her sobs and tears, she turned to the troubled Yusei, and saw his expression become even more stressed as he looked at her. Dammit. Couldn't she keep it together for even a _few_ moments? She couldn't make Yusei worry. She didn't deserve his concern. Aki knew now. She was a monster. She really was. And, although that fact tore her heart apart, she tried her hardest to keep it together. In a shaky voice, she asked, "Do you… still have that extra helmet…?"

Yusei's frown deepened. She was really falling apart, and her nonchalant façade was breaking with each passing second. There was nothing he could do until she decided to let him in. So he resigned to her wishes as he passed her his extra helmet, and after a brief thank you, she started driving. He watched the Bloody Kiss drive off into the road, and figured now would be a good time to follow. While he followed the magenta colored D-Wheel, he couldn't help but recall his words from the Fortune Cup.

"_I'll catch anything you dish out! Vent out all your sorrow!"_

He never imagined that it would be this difficult to comfort her when she needed it.

* * *

><p>She didn't come in with the team to visit the twins.<p>

When Rua and Ruka had been moved from urgent care, it wasn't long until the doctors let them visit the two. They were worn and a bit shaken, but overall, they were fine and would be making a complete recovery. They promised to retell the events of what happened after they spoke with Aki, but the girl hadn't joined them to visit the two children, so everyone nominated Yusei to find the distressed girl, believing he would be best to find her and offer whatever comfort she needed. He had no arguments to the idea; in fact, if anyone of their team decided that someone else should have gone, he would have denied the chosen teammate the right to talk to the girl.

Yusei found the missing girl outside the hospital on a bench, her figure illuminated lightly by the street light above her. She had her hands clasped together tightly, and she stared at them continuously, fidgeting every few moments, as if thinking about something troublesome. When Yusei was within arm's reach, she glanced upwards to him, expecting him to say something. "Aki…" he started, not entirely sure what he should say or do. He decided to simply state the obvious and see where it took him. "You can see Rua and Ruka now."

Aki shook her head immediately to the idea. "I can't."

Taking note of the heavy guilt in her voice, he knew that she wasn't ready to see the twins. He sat himself next to her and looked at her, silently trying to reach out to her through her self-loathing and pain. "Aki…" he began, trying to find the words that would help her.

Aki shook her head, already knowing Yusei was going to try to comfort her. But she didn't deserve his sympathy, his understanding, his kindness. "I can't see them," she repeated, tears filling her eyes once again. She held out her hands, staring at them as if she was seeing the blood she had drawn tonight on them. "Not like… Not like this. Not when I know that nothing has changed." She clenched her hands and her nails pierced into her skin, and she lowered her head, placing it on her fists. A sob escaped her as the horrible feelings continued to swirl within her gut and twist around her heart, squeezing it. "Nothing…! I thought- I thought I was becoming a better person," she choked out in between the heartbroken sobs. "S-Someone… who wasn't a monster. Someone who didn't enjoy making people feel pain. Someone the twins could look up to…!" Her voice was borderline hysterical by this point. The heavy realization slammed into her, and she threw her hands against her face, as she screamed. "But nothing's change! I'm still a monster… I'm still…" Her teary eyes opened once again, terror dilating the pupils in her eyes as she whispered, "I'm still the Black Rose Witch…"

This was agonizing. Hearing his friend openly admit between her tears that she believed herself to be a monster was completely and unbelievably _agonizing. _Yusei had gone through so much pain in his life, from physically being impaled with a shard of metal to emotionally believing that his foster mother was gone for good, but this was a completely different kind of pain because this wasn't his own personal pain. He wasn't the only one suffering this time, but rather, he was only getting a _glimpse _of a pain that wasn't even _his._ He shook his head, trying to deny her harsh, self-condemning words. "Aki, that's not true…"

She looked at him with her crying, incredulous eyes, and Yusei felt that insane desire to take away all her pain pull at him again. "Yes it is!" she screamed at him. Her eyes turned fearful, and they widened more as the streams of liquid began to fall down her heart-shaped face at an even faster rate. "I turned on _you,_ Yusei! I _threatened _you! Because I thought you were in the way! I would've hurt you…!" The sobs began to overtake her voice, interrupting her sentences, and she gave into the urge to just simply cry like there was no tomorrow. She couldn't fight the pain off any longer or deny the tears their right of way. "If you hadn't… If you…" She almost hurt the one she loved for short-lived pleasure of revenge. "I… would have…" Aki would have harmed Yusei, her savior. She would have lashed out at him and hurt him.

She could have _killed him._

That realization, and _that_ realization alone, broke her completely into pieces unlike any of the heavy realizations she had come to understand that night.

He watched her with unguarded and desperate eyes as the tears rushed out of her eyelids rapidly similar to a river. The sobs ripped out of her throat easily now that there was no blockade to their exit, and her whole body trembled from the deep gasps of her breakdown. Watching her become reduced to such a state _killed _him. _Never _had he seen her like this. An intense pain tore at the area in his chest where his heart should be, and he could no longer allow her to suffer alone. He swiftly moved closer and embraced her deeply, using one hand to push the back of her head into the crook of her neck, and the wrapped the other hand around her waist. In between her wails, she weakly attempted to pry herself from his iron grip. She didn't deserve this comfort from him, but he wouldn't release her, and eventually, she succumbed into his warm and comforting grasp and her desire to be held by him. She wrapped her thin arms around his neck and bawled even louder without any regret, not unlike a young child. Yusei ran his hand through her soft hair, trying to comfort Aki any way he could. He wished he could simply steal the pain away from her and take it on himself, but such a desire wasn't reasonable, so he waited for what seemed like an eternity for her sobs to quiet before he attempted to comfort her.

Eventually, her weeping turned quiet, but he didn't let go of her. He didn't stop stroking her hair. "Aki…" he whispered as soothingly as he could. "You're different now."

He felt her soft, magenta colored hair shake from side to side. A hiccup escaped her before she was able to deny his words. "No… I'm not…"

His hand continued to stoke her head softly, as if she was a kitten. "Listen to me," he pleaded with her. "Just _listen._" He paused, waiting for her assent, and eventually felt her nod against his neck. He sighed, and braced himself in case she reacted negatively to his next statement. "The Black Rose Witch… No matter what you do, she will be a part of you."

Immediately, he felt Aki tense underneath him, and heard her gasp as if he had just stabbed her, which was most likely not far from the truth with such a callous statement. He felt her shake within his arms, and he quickly realized that perhaps saying such a thing wasn't what she was looking for. But he wasn't done, and the hand that was stroking her hair quickly moved to rub her back in consolation, trying to calm her tears by quietly shushing her. "Let me finish, Aki… I'm not done." Still, the heartbreaking noises she had been making earlier were making a comeback, and so he continued stroking her back. "I'm not rejecting you, Aki," he whispered into her ear, repeating his words from so long ago. "I never will. I promise."

The firm tone of Yusei's words as well as the conviction within them made her whimper and clutch at him tighter. She wanted to let go of him and separate her sinful self from his beautiful soul, and yet at the same time, she never wanted to be apart from him. The claw Signer had thought he had been agreeing with her. She thought that her atrocities had finally made him realize how horrible she was, and he would let her go. But he was still holding her. And he was still refusing to let her go. Mixed feelings of relief and frustration ate at her, making her feel so conflicted that all she could do was hold onto him and _cry_. Yusei seemed to understand that, as he continued to allow her to embrace him.

Feeling her calm down slightly, he continued his earlier thoughts. "The Black Rose Witch will be a part of you… Just not in the way you think she is." He paused after hearing her quiet sniffle, and he knew she was listening. "The pain you've suffered in the time that you were her... The experiences you've endured… Those have changed into memories. And it's those things that make you who you are." He pulled her back slightly, not enough to separate himself completely from her, but enough to look into her sorrowful chocolate eyes. He felt something play at his heartstrings as he stared into her eyes. She looked so innocent, so pure… "The Black Rose Witch is not who you really are. She's only a part of the beautiful soul in front of me. You're Izayoi Aki, daughter of Setsuko and Hideo. You're a Signer, a member of our team, Aki." He let out a small smile form at his lips, showing how sincere he was. "But most importantly, Aki… You're our friend."

How? How could he always do this? How could he always be so understanding? How did he make her feel like she was always forgiven? But she wasn't ready to forgive herself yet. She untangled her arms from his neck and turned sideways to avoid her gaze, but Yusei didn't remove himself from the girl. She laid her head upon his shoulders, tears still rolling down her face as she argued, "B-But Yusei… I… I still almost _killed_ someone… I almost hurt _you…_" There it was again. That fact that broke her every time. "I enjoyed seeing them in pain… I'm still-"

Yusei cut through her response before she could repeat herself. "What you did back there was not a revival of the Black Rose Witch," he disputed fiercely. "That wasn't an act that would be performed by who you _used_ to be, Aki."

She met his gaze again with incredulous eyes. "But...!"

He interrupted her off again, his azure eyes burning passionately at her. "Think about this Aki… Why did you hurt those criminals?"

"I…" His intense look caught her off guard, as did his simple question, so her response was also straight-forward. "Because I was angry…"

"Why were you angry?"

Her response was quick. "They hurt Rua and Ruka…"

Yusei's eyes lit up almost victoriously, a similar look to when he had found a solution to a problem with a D-Wheel that had been bothering him for weeks. "Exactly. You didn't act out in rejection or pain of being hurt _yourself_. You attacked them because they hurt your _friends_."

The owner of the rose dragon was stunned, her eyes widened at the mechanic's analysis. "I… That's… not…"

"You wanted to protect Rua and Ruka," he stated, knowing it was the obvious truth. He finally removed his arm from her waist, but kept contact by running his hand through her silky hair again, another gesture of tenderness that was something only Aki could bring out of him. "You love them. And because they got hurt, it made you so upset. Your anger got the best of you. No one is perfect, Aki. We all make mistakes." He examined her, noting how her cheeks were tinged with a light cerise color from all the tears than ran down them. Yusei removed his glove, realizing that today he was repeating many of his actions and words from the past when Aki was still a very troubled soul, and yet, somehow, all of these motions seemed to be comforting to her. He had no issues with repeating the acts, so he wiped away the remaining tears on her cheek.

Yusei could tell that, although his words were affecting her, she still needed a little more convincing. He didn't mind. He would stand by her until she realized she found the comfort she needed. Days, weeks, months, it didn't matter. He would help her through this. "Aki, do you remember how angry Misty was with you during the Dark Signers battle?"

The claw Signer was surprised by the sudden change in their conversation, but she complied with the topic change. "I could never forget, Yusei. She was so upset because she thought I killed her brother…" Her expression became solemn at the mention of the broken siblings and the reminder of the difficult battle.

Yusei nodded at her. "Her anger, her pain, and her lust for revenge… Everything she did. _Everything_ was for Toby." He met Aki's attentive gaze with his serious stare. "That was because she loved him so much, and it didn't matter to her what kind of monstrous deeds she might have done." Aki's eyes turned towards the ground, and she seemed to be contemplating everything he said. "The point is that love is a powerful driving force, Aki. It can make you do things that you swore you never would do before." He used his hand and tipped her face lightly towards him, urging the girl to look at him. She met his gaze with almost hopeful eyes, and he felt his eyes soften impossibly more from looking at her expression. "You love the twins. What you did back there is not unforgivable Aki." He caressed her face, noticing how her tear ducts create liquid once again, and her bottom lip was quivering. "It's _okay._"

Those two words broke Aki's control over her tears once again. She was crying so much tonight, but now, she finally felt relieved. She wasn't an evil witch in Yusei's eyes; in fact, to him, she was someone who could be forgiven. She was still his friend, still _Aki_, not the Black Rose Witch. The knowledge made her heart swell from the sudden wave of happiness, relief, and love she was consumed by. Aki gave him a watery smile and let out a shaky laugh as she wiped the incoming stream of tears. Yusei returned her smile, finally feeling at ease now that his friend was consoled. He helped her wipe away the last of her tears and said, "Rua and Ruka are waiting for you. They'd like to see you."

Aki gripped the hand that was on her cheek, and held his hand against her cheek by placing her hand upon his. "Thank you, Yusei…" she whispered, closing her eyes as she leaned into his warm hand. After a few moments of silence, she opened her eyes again and looked at Yusei with a grateful expression, chocolate orbs twinkling with thanks. "Thank you…"

Yusei smiled softly in return, caressing her cheek with the hand she held against her face. Tiny lights reflected in his eyes as well as he locked his gaze with hers. "Anytime, Aki," he whispered back.

* * *

><p>The pair eventually returned to the twins' room, and as Aki went to the two twins, Crow placed his hand on Yusei's shoulder, grinning broadly at the raven-haired boy. "Great job, Yusei. I was worried that Aki was going to go on about moping for <em>weeks<em>, yet you snapped her out of it in less than an hour."

Yusei smiled at his long-time friend. "Thanks Crow. I appreciate it." The two boys turned their gazes to the medical beds, where Aki was currently receiving a bear hug from the youngest of their group.

"I'm sorry, Aki-san…" Ruka breathed. Her eyes were downcast, and she tightened her hold on the older Signer girl. "I'm sorry for making you worry so much."

Rua, who couldn't join in on the emotional embrace due to the fact he was in a different bed, seconded Ruka's apology. The normally energetic boy looked exhausted, but his expression looked even more defeated. "I'm sorry too, Aki-neechan. I shouldn't have made you wait and forced Ruka to come with me to three different convenience stores for some kind of specific popcorn."

The older girl laughed weakly at the younger boy's statement, finally understanding what took the twins so long to come back. Yes, they had scared the living daylights out of her, and yes, they were the reason for her almost killing two wicked men, but she couldn't bring herself to feel anger at the children. She squeezed Ruka back for a moment longer, before going over to Rua and hugging him as well. "I'm just glad you're both okay…" she murmured.

When Aki released him, the teal hair-colored boy grinned largely at her, seeming to be back to normal, as if soothed by the older girl's acceptance. "Of course we're okay! We have you to look over us!"

The teen stared at Rua, completely stunned by an off-hand statement for the second time that night. "Wh-What…?"

Ruka smiled at the astounded woman. She looked at Aki with an expression that swore she had absolute trust in her. "You always take care of us, Aki-san. At school, at home, everywhere. Ever since you entered our lives, you've always been that trusted someone to be there for me and Rua. You're always looking out for us. That's why I sent Regulas-san to you, Aki-san. Because I know you'll protect us."

She wasn't sure _how_ her body kept doing it, but Aki felt the familiar pressure in her eyes that signaled the fact that water was on the way. She was sure that she had drained herself of tears from her episodes with Yusei, but somehow, liquid was still forming involuntarily in her almond-shaped eyes. She felt a familiar warm hand rest upon her shoulder, and she knew immediately it was Yusei. Aki turned her head slightly to the right, looking at the man who held her heart, finding that he was smiling at her. His eyes said it all.

_You're not a monster. You're not a witch. You're someone the twins look up to, and you're our friend._

Aki closed her eyes for a moment in order to stop the liquid from overflowing this time, before reopening them to look at all of the people in the room. All of her friends that supported her and looked at her the same way before this entire event, despite having seen what she could do in her rage. She silently thanked the heavens above for giving her this second chance at life, for the forgiveness her loved ones gave her. She would keep helping her friends. She would always dedicate herself to them.

"Thank you, Ruka… Rua… Everyone… Thank you. I needed that. I really, really needed that," she admitted, a weak smile forming at her mouth from the overwhelming feelings of happiness and content. "I love you… all of you," Aki spoke, closing her eyes again, simply enjoying the warm feelings of everyone's presence.

_Thank you._

* * *

><p>AN: Alright. Rant time. }=D (Feel free to skip this and leave. This is just going to be me ranting a few things I want to mention about this story, like inspiration for it and music I listened to while writing it)

So, it turns out I have a thing for really really _really _long one-shots. I try for 3,000 words... and I over-extend by almost 8,000. Nice Mana. _Nice. _And I could've sworn I said I was going to do the Sonic fandom next. I do have one story for it in the works, but seeing how close school is (uwah ;A;), I decided to finish at least either this story or the other. And will you look at that? I finished this one. XD

Let's see... As for inspiration, I watched this really good YGO 5D's video of Aki. It's a video tribute to her, which mostly involves her going Black Rose Witch mode, and I decided that I wanted to play with her dark side for a story. And this was born~ =D I also listened to a crap load of music while writing this to get me into the mood. 'Our Solemn Hour' and 'Forgiven' by Within Temptation, 'Prayer of the Refuge' by Rise Against, 'My Skin' by Natalie Merchant, and 'Perfect' by Hedley were the main songs, I think. Oh, and I did listen to a lot of depressing yet beautiful Naruto music with the sound of rain playing along to it to get me into the mood of writing Aki's angst fest (tee hee, angst fest x3). Just in case anyone wanted to listen to music while reading this (though I question how effective it was to mention the music at the _end_ of the fanfic -v-''). So... yeah. Thanks for reading~!


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